Three Senior Forwards to Vie for 2012 Hobey Baker Memorial Award

The three finalists for the 2012 Hobey Baker Memorial Award as the top player in NCAA Division I men's ice hockey were announced today in Minnesota. All three finalists are senior forwards who have finished their collegiate careers: Maine’s Spencer Abbott, Minnesota-Duluth’s Jack Connolly and Colgate’s Austin Smith.

The trio emerged from an original list that featured a total of 10 candidates. The other seven preliminary finalists included defenseman Brian Dumoulin of Boston College, goaltender Troy Grosenick of Union, goaltender Shawn Hunwick of Michigan, defenseman Tim Kirby of Air Force, defenseman Torey Krug of Michigan State, defenseman Justin Schultz of Wisconsin, and forward Reilly Smith of Miami (Ohio).

The award is named for former Princeton University hockey and football player Hobart Amory Hare "Hobey" Baker, an early 20th century college hockey star who ultimately died in a biplane crash in France in the closing days of World War I. The award in his name, first  given in 1981 to Minnesota's Neal Broten, is based on character, scholarship, and compliance with NCAA regulations, in addition to on-ice skill and playing ability.

Abbott, a native of Hamilton, Ont., led all of Division I in scoring this season with 21 goals and a nation-high 41 assists for 62 points. The Hockey East Player of the Year, he missed the conference championship game against Boston College with an injury suffered in the semifinals, but returned for the NCAA Tournament last weekend. He scored Maine’s first goal, the final point of his career, in the Black Bears’ 5-2 loss to Minnesota-Duluth at the NCAA Northeast Regional in Worcester, Mass. on Saturday. For his career, he collected 54-92—146 points in 151 games, was a Maine Scholar-Athlete Award winner as a junior, and just signed a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs as a free agent.

Connolly, a 2011 Hobey Baker Award finalist who helped his hometown Bulldogs to their first-ever national title last spring in an overtime win over Michigan, was second overall to Abbott with 20-40—60 points this winter. He scored UMD’s first goal in the NCAA win over Maine last week, before the Bulldogs were blanked 4-0 the following evening by Boston College to bow out of the tournament. He tallied 66-131—197 points in 166 outings with UMD, and led the Bulldogs in points his last three campaigns while also being named a first-team choice for the Western Collegiate Hockey Association in each of those years.

Smith came in third to Abbott and Connolly with 36-21—57 points, although he led the entire nation in total goals and shorthanded goals (6), and was also a first-team selection for the Eastern College Athletic Association. The only drafted player of the Hobey finalist trio, by his hometown Dallas Stars in 2008, he is now skating professionally for Texas (AHL). Smith tallied his final collegiate point on an assist in a 6-2 loss to Union in an ECAC Tournament semifinal on March 16 in Atlantic City, before ending his Colgate career the following day in a 3-0 consolation game loss to Cornell. He finished with 79-87—160 points in 153 contests, and twice led the Raiders in scoring.

The winner of the 32nd Hobey Baker Memorial Award will be announced on April 6 at the NCAA Frozen Four in Tampa, Fla.